Gerald White Johnson (1890 – March 22, 1980) was a journalist, editor, essayist, historian, biographer, and novelist. Over his career spanning more than seven decades, he was known for being "one of the most eloquent spokespersons for America's adversary culture." Johnson was an editorial writer for the Baltimore "Sunpapers" for nearly 20 years, a weekly columnist for ''

The New Republic ''The New Republic'' is an American magazine of commentary on politics, contemporary culture, and the arts. Founded in 1914 by several leaders of the progressive movement, it attempted to find a balance between "a liberalism centered in hum ...

'' for 26 years, and the author of more than 30 books on American culture and politics. He wrote mystery novels under the pen name of Charles North.

Life and career

Johnson was born in Riverton,

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

, the son of an editor of a Baptist magazine. He graduated from

Wake Forest College Wake Forest University is a private research university in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Founded in 1834, the university received its name from its original location in Wake Forest, north of Raleigh, North Carolina. The Reynolda Campus, the un ...

in 1910. During World War I he was a member of the

American Expeditionary Force The American Expeditionary Forces (A. E. F.) was a formation of the United States Army on the Western Front of World War I. The A. E. F. was established on July 5, 1917, in France under the command of General John J. Pershing. It fought alon ...

. He was the first professor of journalism at the

University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the multi-campus public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the NC School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referred to as the UNC Sy ...

. While there he published the first of many books, ''The Story of Man's Work'', a defense of liberal capitalism. He opposed the anti-evolution movement during the " Monkey Trial" era. Johnson worked for ''The Evening Sun'' of Baltimore from 1926 to 1943, when he retired to write for magazines and to concentrate on writing books. In 1949 he served as the honorary chairman of a committee that advocated against

loyalty oath A loyalty oath is a pledge of allegiance to an organization, institution, or state of which an individual is a member. In the United States, such an oath has often indicated that the affiant has not been a member of a particular organization or ...

s and in 1950 published an article in '' Harper's'' called "Why Communists are Valuable." Johnson provided broadcast commentary in Baltimore for a few years in the 1950s. He wrote many works on topics in American history, beginning with ''Andrew Jackson: An Epic in Homespun'' (1927). He was a friend, colleague and protege of

H. L. Mencken Henry Louis Mencken (September 12, 1880 – January 29, 1956) was an American journalist, essayist, satirist, cultural critic, and scholar of American English. He commented widely on the social scene, literature, music, prominent politicians, ...

, although their philosophies differed. He married Kathryn Hayward and they had two daughters. He died in Baltimore on March 22, 1980.''New York Times''
John L. Hess, "Gerald W. Johnson, Reporter-Historian," March 24, 1980
accessed December 20, 2010

Works

*''The Undefeated'' (New York: Minton, Balch & Co., 1927). A book about Mt. Rushmore sculptor Gutzon Borglum's role in designing the Stone Mountain memorial in Georgia. *''Randolph of Roanoke: A Political Fantastic'' (New York: Minton, Balch & Co., 1929) * ''America's Silver Age: The Statecraft of Clay–Webster–Calhoun'' (New York, London, Harper & Bros., 1939) *''Imperial Republic: Speculations on the Future, If Any, of the Third U.S.A.'' *''Incredible Tale: The Odyssey of the Average American in the Last Half Century'' (Harper & Bros., 1950) *''Roosevelt: Dictator or Democrat?'' (New York, London: Harper & Bros., 1941) *''The Congress'' (Morrow, 1963) *''The Cabinet'' (Morrow, 1966) *''This American People'' (1951) *''The First Captain: The Story of John Paul Jones.'' (NY: Coward-McCann, 1947) *''Pattern for Liberty: The Story of Old Philadelphia'' (1952) *''America is Born: A History for Peter'' (1959) *''America Moves Forward: A History for Peter'' (Morrow, 1960) *''America Grows Up: A History for Peter'' (Morrow, 1960) *''Hod-carrier: Notes of a Laborer on an Unfinished Cathedral'' (1964) *''Woodrow Wilson: The Unforgettable Figure who has Returned to Haunt Us''(1944) *''Communism an American View '' (Morrow, 1964) *''The Supreme Court'' (1968) *''A Little Night Music'' (1945) *''Andrew Jackson An Epic in Homespun'' (1927) *''American Heroes and Hero-Worship'' (NY: Harper, 1943) *''The Lines are Drawn: American Life since the First World War as Reflected in the Pulitzer Prize Cartoons'' (Lippincott, 1958) *''The British Empire: An American View of its History from 1776 to 1945'' (Morrow, 1969) *''America-watching: Perspectives in the course of an incredible century '' (1976)

Accolades

In 1952 Johnson received the Alfred I. duPont Award.All duPont–Columbia Award Winners
,

Columbia Journalism School The Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism is located in Pulitzer Hall on the university's Morningside Heights campus in New York City. Founded in 1912 by Joseph Pulitzer, Columbia Journalism School is one of the oldest journalism s ...

. Retrieved 2013-08-06. In 1953, Johnson received the

Peabody Award The George Foster Peabody Awards (or simply Peabody Awards or the Peabodys) program, named for the American businessman and philanthropist George Peabody, honor the most powerful, enlightening, and invigorating stories in television, radio, and ...

and

The Hillman Prize The Hillman Prize is a journalism award given out annually by The Sidney Hillman Foundation, named for noted American labor leader Sidney Hillman. It is given to "journalists, writers and public figures who pursue social justice and public polic ...

References

;Citations *Vincent Fitzpatrick, "Disturbing the Peace: Gerald W. Johnson In An Age of Conformity," Virginia Quarterly Review'', Summer 2002, 427-38
available online
accessed December 12, 2010 *Vincent Fitzpatrick, ''Gerald W. Johnson: From Southern Liberal to National Conscience'' (Louisiana State University Press, 2002)

External links

*
Johnson, Gerald White
a
NCpedia
{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Gerald White 1890 births 1980 deaths People from Robeson County, North Carolina